What Are The Odds?: A college hockey romance. (Phil-U Book 1)

Grace.

Ava stepped closer to me, discreetly whispering, “Don’t look now, but there’s a very very handsome man watching you.”

Of course I couldn’t help but look. Ryker was sitting on the bottom step of the bleachers. Freshly showered and looking, well, as Ava put it, really handsome. He was in gym shorts and a long-sleeve gym tee. The fit carved along his muscles nicely. I wasn’t the only person to notice that. Many of the girls on my team double looked him as they made their way to the changerooms.

“How do you know he’s looking at–”

He waved when he caught my eye. I guess that answered that question. We’d just finished today’s practice. Coach hadn’t gone too hard on us. Having returned from our meet yesterday morning, today had focussed on recovery and endurance rather than pace.

Ava nudged me. “Go say hi.”

Ryker stood up as I approached him, a perfect smile transitioning his face.

“Hey, Grace.”

“Hey.”

“I felt bad for missing the football the other night, so I thought I could make it up to you.”

He held up his hands. He was holding two paper bags.

“You brought me lunch?”

He nodded. “Chicken or ham.”

I thought for a moment, eyebrows furrowed in concentration.

“Is half and half an option?”

He laughed. “Sure.”

I sat on the bleachers with him, crossing my legs as he unwrapped the salad rolls and passed me half. His timing was perfect. I was always starving after practice.

“How’d your meet go?” he asked.

“Good. The team went well.” I raised my hand to hide my full mouthful. “You had a game too, right?”

“We got the win.”

“What’s it like being a college quarterback? Even us Aussies know that’s a big deal.”

A dimple appeared when Ryker smiled sheepishly. I’ll bet that dimple had gotten him away with plenty of things before.

“I guess I’m kind of used to it now. As I’ve grown up, the scale has grown with me. First it was high school, then college.”

I wiped the corner of my mouth with my serviette. “What comes next?”

“Hopefully the NFL if I have a good season.”

After setting my sandwich down, I draped my wet hair over my shoulder. I was in nothing but bathers, but the humidity in here was keeping me warm.

“You’re a chance of being drafted?”

He nodded. “I’m currently ranked to be the sixth overall pick next April.”

“Ryker.” I nudged his arm. “That’s amazing!”

He shrugged nonchalantly. “I don’t want to get ahead of myself. A lot can change between now and then. Injuries. Bad seasons.”

“I highly doubt that’ll be the case for you.” I beamed proudly. “How lucky am I, eating lunch with a future NFL player.”

“I think I’m the lucky one.”

His comment was equal parts corny and cute. And also kind of confusing. I’d thought these were platonic sandwiches. Maybe they were and I was overthinking things.

“Remind me to get your signature before this group assignment is over,” I jested.

“Better get Holloway’s while you’re at it.” At my frown, Ryker added, “He’s already been drafted to the NHL. Their draft works differently to ours.”

Applying to Phil-U, I’d known their sporting program was up there with the best. I guess it made sense they’d recruited athletes that were a high chance of going pro after graduation. There were plenty of people in my team who were aspiring to be future Olympians. Some would make it. Some wouldn’t. Like most sports, swimming was extremely competitive. I lacked the drive you needed to make it to that level. I didn’t want it enough. Truth be told, I didn’t want it at all. I enjoyed swimming and I was good at it. But there were plenty of paths swimming could take me that didn’t end with me dedicating my entire life to it.

“How did you go at Holloway’s the other night?” Ryker asked.

“He got the hang of it.”

So had his three roommates. It’d turned into a much bigger deal than I anticipated. They’d become very invested. Especially Tripp. He was a character. He reminded me so much of my youngest-older brother, Dylan. Hanging with Levi and his friends made me miss home, but also kind of bridged a gap. Watching football on the couch with the guys was a normal night for me back home.

“Are you free for a repeat soon?” Ryker asked. “You could come round to my place. Maybe we could get dinner first.”

I held my hand over my mouth as I nodded. I’d just taken a huge bite. While Ryker’s invitation was the same precipice for my night with Levi, something about Ryker’s felt different. Not bad. Just different.